Electric apparatus for railway switches, signals, and the like.



L. GRIFFITH.

ELEGTRIG APPARATUS FOR RAILWAY SWITCHES, SIGNALS, AND THE LIKE.APPLICATION- FILED APR. 8, 1903.

906, 129. PatentedDec. 8, 1908,

4 5 a 0 I I 1 I 13%1 AVAILAELE CQPY uNrEn STATES rArENT OFFICE.

LAWRENCE GRIFFITH, OF YONKERS, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,TO FEDERAL SIGNAL COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

ELECTRIC APPARATUS FOR RAILWAY SWITCHES, SIGNALS, AND THE LIKE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 8, 1903,

Patented Dec. 8, 1908.

Serial No. 151,578.

had therein to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to electric apparatus for railway switches,signals, and the like,

and is shown and described as applied to av railway switch and amongother things is an adaptation of the invention described in anapplication for Letters Patent filed by me March 28th, 1903, No.149,961, to the invention set forth in U. S. Patent No. 647,483. Itsobjects are to provide an effective and safe apparatus of the characterdescribed,

and one which when actuated to throw the part to be moved, will completeits cycle, and to this end consists of means for cutting off power fromthe apparatus as it operates to indicate that the part to be moved hasbeen thrown, and certain novel features connected with electric motors.

In order that my invention may be clearly understood I shall firstdescribe in detail the 3 mode in which I carry the same into practice,

and then point out the novel features of the invention in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of thespecification in which similar parts are designated by like charactersin all the views.

The drawing shows a diagrammatic view of the invention as applied to arailway switch mechanism.

49 The operating lever 1 in the tower has the ordinary tappet slot 2,which cooperates with a roller attached to the tappet 3, said tappetworking in the ordinary interlocking board. Another slot 4 in the leverhas two inclined portions 5 and 6, connected by a horizontal portion 7,having stop faces at its ends. In this slot is a roller 8 connected bythe rod 9 to the armature of the indicating magnet 10.

Fastened to the frame which carries the lever and suitably insulatedtherefrom are four pairs of contact springs as follows :11 and 12, 13and 14, 15 and 16, 17 and 18. Fastened to and working with the lever isthe bridge 20. This bridge is fastened securely to the rod 19 and moveswith it. The bridge 21 is loosely attached to the rod and is moved bythe stops 22 and 23 coming in con tact with it. The lever l and thebridge 20 with its contact springs constitute a motor controller oroperating device. 21 and its contacts constitute with the lever 1 andindicator roller 8, means for auto1natically breaking, by theindicating'action of the indicator, the indicator circuit, hereinafterdescribed, that is made by the indicator controller, as set forth below.It will be understood that the said contact-springs and bridges with therod 19 and its stops, constitute an adaptation of the electric switch atthe operators station described in my above mentioned a plication forLetters Patent.

By suitab e gearing, to be described, the motor 24 at the switch, is soconnected to the motion-plate 25 as to give it a backward and forwardmotion. In the motion-plate 25 is a slot 26 carrying a roller which isconnected by a suitable rod to the switch points. It is clear that asemaphore, a bridge look, a railway gate, and other such railwaytraffic-controlling devices may be operated in like manner or in anyknown equivalent manner. The motor 24 is that described in my saidapplication as having two field windings or coils 2-7 and 28, each forproducing a different movement of the switch.

27 is the reverse field coil and 28 is the normal field coil: Attachedto the frame which carries the gearing and the motion-plate, andsuitably insulated therefrom, are four pairs of contact springs, asfollows: 29 and 30, 31 and 32, 33 and 34, 35 and 36. Attached to a rodwhich works with the motion-plate are three bridges, 37, 38, and 39,adapted to make contact between the pairs of s rings as will behereinafter described. The ridge 39 and its contact springs constitutean indicator controller that is moved in correspondence with the switch.It will be understood that said contact springs and bridges with saidrod constitute an adaptation of the electric switch at the motion-plate,described in my said application.

From any suitable source, 40, of electric energy, which may be a primarybattery, a storage battery, or a dynamo, a positive common wire 41 isattached to contact springs 11 and 13 on the controller in the tower.From the contact spring 12, which is the mate of 11 the wire 42, hereindesig- The bridge position.

nated the normal operating wire, which leads to the spring 34 at theswitch; and from the contact spring 14, which is the mate of 13, thewire 43, herein designated the reverse operating wire, leads to thecontact spring 36 at the switch. From the contact spring 15 in thetower, the wire 44, herein designated the reverse indicating wire, leadsto the contact spring 29 at the switch and the contact spring 30, whichis the mate to 29, is attached by the branch wire 45 to the reverseoperating wire 43. From the contact spring 18, the wire 46, hereindesignated the normal indicating wire, leads to the contact spring 31 atthe switch. he contact spring 32, which is the mate to 31, is connectedby the branch wire 47 to the normal operating wire 42. The contactspring 35 at the switch is csnnected to the reverse field coil 27 of themotor, and the contact spring 33 is connected to the normal field coil28 of the motor. Both of these field coils are connected as shown inFig. 1 to one of the commutator brushes of the motor, and the othercommutator brush is connected by the wire 48 to the negative common.Springs 16 and 17 are connected to the wire 50, which in turn isconnected to one terminal of the indicator magnet 10; the other terminalof the indicator magnet 10 is connected by the wire 51 to the negativecommon 48. The negative common 48, the two indicating wires 44 and 46and the two operating wires 42 and 43, are line wires, The operatingcircuits connect the motor controller with the field coils of the motor,and the indicator circuits connect the indicator controller and theindicator.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows: The lever 1 has fourpositions, which are designated 1, 2, 3, and 4. 1-is the full normalposition; 2 is the normal operating position; 3 is the reverse operatingosition; and 4 is the full reverse position. 11 position 1, all theparts are in the normal The condition of the circuits in this positionis as follows: Take first the normal operating circuit. Starting fromthe positive common 41 at the contact spring 11 at the machine, thecontact is made to the spring 12. Following the normal operating wire 42to the spring 34, the contact, between it and the spring 33 is broken;then along the wire 47 to the spring 32, the contact between 32 and 31is made through the bridge 39; then back along the indicating wire 46 tothe spring 18 and the contact be tween 18 and 17 is broken. There is nocurrent flowing on this circuit. Take neXt the reverse operatingcircuit. Starting from the positive common at the spring 13, the contactbetween 13 and 14 is broken, consequently there is no current flowing onthe reverse operating wire 43. A positive connection to the reverseindicating wire 44 is at the spring 29. At the switch the connectionbetween 29 and 30 is broken, consequently there is no current flowing on29. In the normal position 1, therefore, there is no current flowing toany of the wires. Suppose the lever to be moved from the position 1 to3, the roller 8 slides down the inclined portion of the slot 5 and comesup against the end of the horizontal portion of the slot 7 bringing thelever to rest. In this position, the bridge 20 has moved from betweenthe contact springs 11 and 12 and has made contact between springs 13and 14. The bric ge 21 has not yet been shifted because the distancefrom the stop 22 to the bridge 21 is a little bit more than two-thirdsof the entire stroke.

Taking up now-the condition of the four circuits in the reverseoperating position 3 Starting from the positive common 41 at the tower,the connection between the springs 11 and 12 is broken, consequentlythere is no current on the wire 42. The connection be tween the springs13 and 14 being made at the bridge 20, positive current flows throughthe wire 43 to the spring 36 at the switch. also leads through the wire45 to the contact spring 30 but the connection between 30 and 29 isbroken. The connect-ion between the springs 36 and 35 being made at thebridge 37, current flows through the reverse field. coil 27, through themotor, and the negative common 48 to the negative side of the battery,thus making a complete circuit. The motor therefore runs, and moves theswitch by means of the motion-plate 25. The very first part of thismovement moves the bridge 39 so as to break connection between 32 and31. Immediately after this takes place, the bridge 38 makes connectionbetween 33 and 34, but as the wire 42 is disconnected from the positivecommon 41 at the tower, no current flows across this bridge at thistime. As the motion of the motor continues, the bridge 37 passes outfrom between the spring 35 and 36, thus cutting off current from themotor. Immediately afterward, the bridge 39 takes up the positionbetween the springs 29 and 30, and the motor and the motionplate come torest; the switch now has been moved to the reverse position through theoperation of the slot in the 1notion-plate 25. Current now flows throughthe positive coinmon 41 in the tower through the springs 13 and 14, andthe wires 43 and 45, across the springs 30 and 29, the wire 44 and tothe spring 15 in the tower. The bridge 21 is still making connectionbetween 15 and 16, current, therefore, will flow through wire 50,through the indication magnet 1.0 and the wire 51 to the negative sideof the battery,

making a complete circuit, energizing the magnet 10 which hits 1tsarmature and 1ts roller enters and moves along the inclined portion 6 ofthe slot and forces the lever .to

the left toits extreme position denoted at 4. J

The very last part of this movement from 3 to 4 shifts the bridge 21from between the contact springs 15 and 16 to a position between thesprings 18 and 17. The contact between 13 and 14 remains made on accountof the length of the bridge 20, the contact between 11 and 12 is stillbroken. The shifting of the bridge 21 from between the springs 15 and 16breaks the circuit through the indication magnet 10 and all fourcircuits are again without current. Upon moving the lever from position4 to position 2, the roller 8 comes against the left end of the slot 7.In this position the bridge 20 breaks the contact between springs 13 and14 and makes contact between 11 and 12. The bridge 21 remains in thesame position as 4, making contact between the springs 17 and 18.

Starting now from the positive common at the spring 11 the contact ismade to the spring 12 and through the normal operating wire 42 to theswitch and to the spring 34,

the contact between 34 and 33 is made through the bridge 38. Thecurrent, therefore, flows through the normal field coil 28, through themotor and the wire 48 to the negative side of the battery, thus making acomplete circuit; and the motor runs in a direction opposite to thatnecessary to reverse the switch and moves the motion-plate from theright toward the left. The first part of this movement moves the bridge39 so as to break the connection between the springs 29 and 30. As themovement proceeds the contact between 33 and 34 is broken, thus takingcurrent away from the motor, and the motor stops. Immediately after thecontact 33 and 34 is broken, the contact between 31 and 32 is made bythe bridge 39 and the circuit from the positive common 41, starting atthe spring 11, is across to spring 12, through the. wires 42 and 47,spring 32 to 31, through the bridge 39 to the wire 46, to the spring 18in the tower, through the bridge 21 to the spring 17 and thence throughthe wire to the indication magnet 10 and on through the magnet and thewire 51 to the negative side of the battery, making a complete circuit.The magnet 10 is, therefore, energized and its armature is attracted.The roller 8 is forced into the inclined portion 5 of the slot, movingthe lever from the position 2 to the position 1.

This movement moves the bridge 21 from between the springs 17 and 18 toits original position between the springs 15 and 16. The circuit throughthe indication magnet is therefore broken and the parts are all in theirnormal position.

What I claim and desire to secure by Let-- ters Patent is:

1. The combination of a movable railway traffic-controlling device, amotor therefor, a source of electric energy, operating and indicatingwires, a single indicating magnet, a controller adapted to be moved intwo directions by said indicating magnet, means for shunting the currentof the battery through said indicating magnet to produce an indication,means for preventing the final movement of the controller, and means forcausing the final movement of the controller by the energizing of theindicating magnet.

2. The combination of a movable railway traffic-controlling device, amotor therefor, a source of electric energy, operating and indicatingWires, a single indicating magnet, means for shunting the currentfromsaid source of electric energy through said indicating magnet toproduce an indication, a controller adapted to be moved in two directions by said indicating magnet, means for preventing the final movementof the controller, and means for releasing the controller and forcausing its final movement actuated by a current in said indicating Wirefrom said source of energy.

3. The combination of a movable railway traffic-controlling device, anelectric motor therefor, a source of electric energy, operating andindicating wires, a single indicating magnet, a controller, adapted tobe moved in two directions by said indicating magnet, means for shuntingthe current of the bat tery through said indicating magnet to produce anindication, means for reventing the final movement of the control er,and means for causing the final movement of the controller by theenergizing of the indicating magnet.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand, this 6th day of April,nineteen hundred and three.

LAVVRENCE GRIFFITH.

Witnesses:

C. W. WEs'roN, J12, H. V. N. PHILIP.

